Means for operating upon the heelportions of shoes



' Oct. 4, 1938.

W. H. NUTT MEANS FOR OPERATING UPON THE HEEL PORTIONS OF SHOES FiledSept. 12, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 W. H. NUTT Oct. 4, 1938.

MEANS FOR OPERATING UPON THE HEEL PORTIONS OF SHOES Filed Sept. 12, 19555 Sheets-Sheet 2 V/VTUR W H MW,- 7

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MEANS FOR OPERATING UPON THE HEEL PORTIONS OF SHOES Filed Sept. 12, 19355 Sheets-Sheet 3 z 9a i waif 5% Oct, 4, 1%& I w. H. NUTT MEANS FOROPERATING UPON THE HEEL PORTIONS OF SHOES Filed Sept. 12, 19 55 5Sheets-Sheet 4 W. H. NUTT Oct. 4, 1938.

. MEANS FOR OPERATING UPON THE HEEL PORTIONS OF SHOES Filed Sept/'12,1935 v 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Inv llillIl-HHHHHK Patented Oct. 4, 1938 MEANSFOR OPERATING UPON THE HEEL- PORTIONS OF SHOES William H. Nutt, Beverly,Ma'ss., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Paterson, N. J.,a corporation of New Jersey Application September 12, 1935, Serial No.40,287

21 Claims.

This invention relates to the performance upon the heel portions vofshoes of such operations as the attachment. of heels thereto; Adivisional application for improvements in lasts was filed in the UnitedStates Patent Office on January 21,

1937, Serial No. l2l,625.

In attaching heels, and especially those of wood, a recognized practiceis to operate through a passage in the cone of a last within a shoe tobe heeled to drill an opening through the heelseat of the shoe intoa'heel clamped thereon, countersink the insole-material about thedrilled opening, insert a screw in the last-passage, and finally set thescrew in place with a screw-driver to draw the heel-seat and the cup ofthe heel together. An adhesive is customarily applied between theattaching surfaces. Difficulties are encountered in such a procedure.The last-passage must be of suflicient diameter to admit the head of thescrew. Because of the sizeof the passage andthe consequent tendency ofthe drill and the point of the screw to enter the work out of correctaxial alinement, it is desirable to have some centering means by whichboth are held in their true paths. Since, however, the drill andcountersink and the screw-driver must rotate, in-

jury by these tools to a screw-centering device is liable to occurthrough wear or by breaking.

An object of my invention is to insure the correct positioning of thetoo-ls and of the fastening for insertion without endangering the meansby which said fastening is positioned. To this end, I employ a lastadapted to enter a shoe and to co-operate with a support to clamp thework for the operations upon it, said last having a passage openingthrough the heel-seat-surface. The lastpassage contains afastening-centering device, preferably provided with yieldable armsextending into proximity to the opening, and movable through the passageis rotatableoperating means having a portion which may be held againstrotation'by the centering'device. The operating means may be a drill andcountersink by which the heel-seat and heel are prepared to receive ascrew-fastening and a screw-driver by'which said fastening is insertedin the work. These operating means are shown herein asmounted on aframe, to a support upon which the'last clamps the work. The operatingmeans, whether the drill and countersink or the screw-driver beconsidered, preferably consists of two concentric members, the outer ofwhich is in the form of a sleeve held against rotation by the centeringdevice while the inner is acting, For the drill and countersink, thelatter furnishes the initially stationary member, it thereafter beinggiven its op-,

lieved .to be patentable novelty irrespective of their particular use asherein described. The centering device, which may be termed a quill, isshown as mounted in the last-passage and held against longitudinaldisplacement by one or more projections from it, these projectionseither entering depressions in a last-thimble or extending between theend of the thimble and a sleeve threaded into the opposite extremity ofthe passage.

The accompanying drawings illustrate a particularform of the invention,with two arrangements of the mounting of the last-quill. In thesedrawings, Fig. 1 presents in broken perspective theientire apparatus;

Fig. 2 is a central vertical section through the drilling andcountersinking mechanism, the tools being partially inserted in thelast-passage; Fig. 3, a perspective view of the quill used in the lastof Fig. 2;

Fig. 4, a broken perspective of the sleeve for securing the quill in thelast-passage; r

Fig. 5, a View similar to Fig. 1 at the time of completion of thedrilling and countersinking operations;

Fig. 6 a perspective View of the drilling and countersinking mechanism;

Fig. 7, a view similar to'Figs. 2 and 3 but showing the screw-insertingmechanism;

Fig. 8, a detail in perspective of. the screwdriver and its co-operatingsleeve, these elements being separated; I

Fig. 9, a central, vertical, longitudinal sectio through the heel-end ofa last provided with a quill differing from that of the precedingfigures;

Fig. 10, a perspective view of the quill of Fig. 9; and V Fig. 11, asimilar view of the last-thimble by which the quill is retained inplace.

The apparatus illustrated in Fig. 1 is organized-generally as is thatdisclosed in Letters Patent of the United States No. 1,826,723,Bertrand, October 13, 1931, and designed for attaching heels to shoes.In this apparatus, a frame It) has supports l2 for a shoe S and its heelI-I'. With these supports co-operates a last I4 within the shoe, toclamp it and its heel together by pressure applied to a member I6contacting with the top of the last-cone and actuated through a yoke I8by treadle mechanism, not illustrated. A column 20 of the frame carriesa motor 22, which, through gearing enclosed in a casing 24, continuouslyrotates shafts 26 and 28 arranged for universal movement. These shaftsoperate, respectively, drilling and countersinking mechanism A andscrew-inserting mechanism B.

Referring to Figs. 2 and 5, the last I4 has extending vertically throughits cone a passage which at its upper portion may be protected by athimble 30. Threaded into the lower portion of the passage is a sleeve32 (Fig. 4) of greater internal diameter than the thimble. Held betweenthe adjacent extremities of the thimble and the sleeve are outwardprojections 34 from a tubular body 36 of a centering device for a screwor other fastening; As'is best shown in Fig. 3, this device is in theform of a springquill, there being resilient arms 38, which may be threein number, depending from the body 36 in proximity to theheel-seat-opening of the last-passage. When the arms are forcedoutwardly against the inside of the sleeve 32, the internal diameter ofthepassage between them is preferably substantially the same as that ofthe thimble 30. Another form of mounting for the quill appears in Figs.9, 10 and 11. Here, a thimble 40 lines the entire last-passage and hasin its wall openings or depressions 42. The quill has an extended body44, a fiange 46 of which lies at the top of the last-cone. Projections48 are shown as struck out of the body, these being inclined outwardlyand upwardly toward the flange. They are so located that when the quillis forced into the last-passage until the flange bears against the topof the'cone, the projections will spring into the openings 42 and lockthe elements together, as may be seen in Fig. 9. From the quill-bodydepend screw-engaging arms 50 which, when expanded, will have aninternal diameter similar to that of the body 44, curved ends 52 of thearms then lying in a lower enlargement 54'of the thimble. In either formof the device, the lower ends of the arms converge downwardly andinwardly to normally approach relatively close to each other and, asillustrated in Fig. '7, so contact with the thread of a screw 5 that thepoint will be positioned substantially at the axis of the last-passage.The head of the screw fits the bore of the thimble of Fig. '7 and thebody of the quill of Fig. 9 to move freely therethrough, yet with littlelateral play. Therefore, when the screw is dropped into the lastpassage,it will be so retained by the quill-arms that its axis and that of thepassage practically coincide. Both the projections 34 and 48 retaintheir respective quills 36 and. 44 against disin a socket at the lowerextremity of the spindle by. a set screw 64 is the shank of a drill 66,of the proper diameter to produce a hole in the work countersink (Fig.5)

to receive the screw s. The handle is extended by a sleeve 68 attachedto a lug I0 depending from said handle and by a bracket I2. The end ofthe spindle 60 turns in the upper portion of the sleeve at I4, whilerotatable in the lower portion of the sleeve, concentric with the drill,is a sleeve or tube I6, the lower inclined end of which has cuttingedges I8 furnishing a countersink. Below the sleeve 68,thecountersink-tube 16 has a bearing in a slide 80, which is guided formovement longitudinally of the handle by a tongue-and-groove connection82 with the sleeve and by a rod 84 passing through and operating in anangular end-portion of the bracket I2. The countersink-tube is compelledto move longitudinally with the slide while free to turn therein bycollars 86, 86, fast on the tube at opposite sides of the slide. Aspring 88 surrounds the rod 64 and urges the slide and countersink-tubedown to an extent determined by engagement with the bracket I2 of a head90 upon the rod. When this relation exists, the tube I6 is so yieldinglyheld that the point of the drill 66 is just at the countersinkingsurface I8. At the same time, a toothed clutch-surface 92 at the upperend of the countersink-tube is held spaced from a like surface 94 at'thelower end of the spindle-portion I4, by a distance approximating thedepth which the drill is to enter the work. Fulcrumed on the handle 62is a hand-lever 96 normally so held by a spring 98 that a roll I00rotatable upon it below the fulcrum-point is above a retainingprojection I02 from the slide 80. With the elements thus related, thedrill and countersink are latched together with the clutch membersseparated, as shown in Fig. 2.

The operator, grasping the handle 02 but leaving the lever 96 in itslatching position, introduces the tools 66 and 16 into the thimble 30 ofthe last.I4 by which the shoe S and heel H are clamped together upon thesupports I2. The countersink having no driving force applied, savethrough the slight frictional engagement of the continuously rotatingdrill, upon contact with the arms 38 of the quill is held by theseagainst rotation and presses them back against the inner wall of thesleeve 32. As the force applied to the quill-arms is therefore onlylongitudinally thereof, without the rapid rotary effect which would beimparted by a tool driven by the spindle, the quill is but littleaffected and will require only infrequent renewal. Were the rotarycontact permitted, the quill-arms would be subjected to much wear, and,if they were caught at the edges by the tool, might be torn off. Thedescent of the tools will be stopped by the contact of the countersinkwith the insole of the shoe. When this is felt by the operator, he willunlatch the handle from the countersink by actuating the lever 96 withthe fingers of the hand grasping the handle, thus withdrawing the rollI00 from above the slide-projection I02. The lever may be released afterthe roll has reached the under side of the projection. Downward pressureupon the handle will lower the drill through the counter- 'sink, whichserves to center and guide it axially of the last-passage. The drillwill therefore enter the insole substantially at right-angles to itssurface. The spring 88 is compressed during this movement. The drillbores into the heelseat-material and heel until the clutch-teeth 94 uponthe spindle engage the teeth 92 upon the The travel will be such thatthe hole approaches the desired depth for the screw. Because of theclutching together of the continuouslyrotating spindle and thecountersink, the latter will be driven and will produce'a depression inthe heel-seat-material in which the head. of the screw may lie, thedrilling of'the opening being simultaneouslycompleted'.

The rotation of the countersink-tube in contact 7 To limit the action ofboth tools, the leverfifi may carry' one portion of astop device, as ascrew I08,threaded vertically through it and locked by. a set-screw'IIU. The other stop-element-may be "furnished by a small standard- H2rising from the frame It! at the outer-[side of firework-supports l2.The stop-screw is so 'setthat when it engages the companion element; thedepth of both the drilling and countersinking will be determined. Theoperator then raisesthe handle 66 and actuates the by a hook H4 near therear of the frame. Having prepared the shoe and heel as just described,the operator dropsa screw s point down into the last-passagev (1ig."7).. Here, its head will engage the wallzof the thimble with itslower threaded portion" resting upon the quill- 'arms 38, it thus beingaxially alined with the passage and with the drilled opening in theWork.

The point therefore cannot catchdn the'insolematerial, and the slot inthe screw-head will be properly positioned to receive the screw-driverwhich is to insert" it.

The inserting mechanism B is shown in detail in .Figs. 7 and 8. 1 The"continuously rotating shaft 28 is connected to aspindle I H5, at thelower extremity of which is formed a screwedriver-bit Surrounding this,portion I20, andbearing at its innerend against a shoulder 122, is asleeve I24 having the same external diameter as the spindle H6. StudsI26, I26-extend through the sleeve and, entering'a groove I28 of thespindle, retain said sleeve against outward displacement. The sleeveextendsbeyon'd the spindle-portion I20,leaving only the bit I I8projecting. The sleeve l24actsiduring the insertion of the screw-driveras did the sleeve J6 of the mechanism A, so that it' is. held againstrotation by engagement with the quill-arms: 38, pressr .ing theseback'without appreciableywear or distortion when the screw-driver-bitlI8 enters the -slctin the screw and inserts it in thehole drilled in theheel. A like protection is afiorded the quill upon the withdrawal of thescrew-driven.

As in the Bertrand patent previously referred to, a clutch I38 maybeinterposed between the shaft 28 and the spindle 'I I6 so the resistanceset up upon the complete insertionpf the screw will cause the clutch toslip and thus stop the application of the driving force to the work. Ahook I32 is shown upon the frame for holdingthe mechanism B in inactiveposition.

When, in this specification, such a phrase as *"rneans forinitiating therotation of said tools successively occurs, it isto be understood thatthiscovers equally the initiation of rotation of the tool firstactuated, either at the beginning of a period of use, to continueuninterrupted through succeeding operating cycles, or initiation at thebeginning of each operating cycle included The lower end of thespindleat I20 is'of reduced diameter.

in such period, with intermediate intervals ofrest.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States is:

i 1. Means for operating upon the heel-portions of shoes comprising alast having a passage opening throughthe heel-seat-surface, afasteningcentering device secured in the passage at the heel-'seat-endand provided with yieldable arms extending in proximity to theheel-seat-opening of the passage, and-rotatable operating means movablethrough the passage and having a portion constructed and arranged to beheld against rotation by engagement with the centering device.

2. Means for operating upon the heel-portions of shoes comprising a lasthaving a passage openingthrough the heel-seat-surface, afastening-centering device secured in the passage at the heel-seat-endand provided with yieldable arms extending in proximity to theheel-seatopening of the passage, a concentric inner drill andoutercountersink movable through the lastpassage, and means for rotatingthe drill and countersink, said countersink being initially free to beheld against rotation by the centering device. I

3. Means for operating upon the heel-portions of shoes comprising a lasthaving a passage opening through the heel-seat-surface, afastening-centering device secured in the passage at the heel seat-endand provided with yieldable arms extending in proximity to theheel-seatopening of'thepassage, a rotatablescrew-driver movable throughthe last-passage, a sleeve surrounding the screw driver and free to beheld against rotation by'engagement with the centering device, and meansfor rotating the screwdriver. 4. Means for operating upon theheel-portions of shoes comprising a frame, a shoe-support thereon, alast between which and the support a shoe may be clamped, said lastbeing provided witha passage through its cone and with a screwcenteringquill at the heel-seat-end of the passage, means for applying pressureto the last to clamp the work, and drilling and countersinking to turnrelatively about said spindle, the sleeve extending in proximity to theend of the spindle at the bit to enter the last-passage therewith forcontact with the quill, and means for rotating the spindle.

6. In an apparatus for operating upon a heel through a last having apassage provided at one extremity with a spring-quill, operating meanscomprising a spindle having at its end a reduced portion at the innerextremity of which is a shoulderand at the outer extremity of which i isa screw-driver-bit, a sleevesurrounding the reduced portion of thespindle and being substantially equal in external diameter to the bodyof the spindle, the sleeve abutting against the shoulder and extendingin proximity to the end of the spindle at the bit for engagement withthe quill and means for preventing longitudinal displacement of thesleeve upon the spindle while permitting it to rotate relativelythereto, and means for rotating the spindle.

7. In an apparatus for operating upon a heel through a last having apassage provided at one extremity with a spring-quill, operating meanshaving an inner drill and an outer countersink arranged concentrically,means for applying power to rotate the drill, the countersink beingarranged to enter the last-passage and to be held initially againstrotation by the quill, means for rotating the drill, and means forcommunicating the rotation of the drill to the countersink.

8. In an apparatus for operating upon a lasted shoe through alast-opening, two concentric cutting tools, one of which is movablethrough and beyond the operating end of the other to penetrate the work,and means made effective during themovement for communicating therotation of such movable tool to the other tool.

9. In an apparatus for operating upon a lasted shoe through alast-opening, two concentric tools each adapted to enter said opening,one of which is movable through and beyond the operating end of theother to act upon' the work after the passage of such other tool throughthe opening into contact with the work, means to impart feedingmovements to said tools by a single movement of said means, and meansfor initiating the rotation of said tools successively.

10. In an apparatus for operating upon a lasted shoe through alast-opening, two concentric tools, one of which is movable through andbeyond the operating end of the other to act upon the Work, and meansfor rotating one of said tools continuously and the otherintermittently.

11. In an apparatus for operating upon a lasted shoe through alast-opening, two concentric tools, means for rotating the inner toolcontinuously, and means for intermittently communicating the rotation ofthe inner tool to the outer tool.

12. In an apparatus for operating upon a lasted shoe through alast-opening, two concentric tools arranged to enter the last-opening,means for rotating one of the tools While the second is non-rotatableduring the entrance of the tools into the last-opening, and means bywhich the second tool is rotated after both are within the last-opening.

13. In an apparatus for operating upon a lasted shoe through alast-opening provided with a spring-quill, a countersink arranged toenter the last-opening and contact with the quill, a drill situatednormally with its operating portion within the countersink and movablelongitudinally of its axis to be projected into operating relation uponcontact of the countersink with the shoe, and means for rotating thedrill and countersink.

14. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a tool carried by the spindle, a second toolrotatable upon the spindle and surrounding the first tool, cooperatingclutch members upon the spindle and outer tool, and means for holdingthe clutch members normally separated.

15. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a tool carried by the spindle, a second toolrotatable upon the spindle and surrounding the first tool, co-operatingclutch members upon the spindle and outer tool, means for holding theclutch members normally separated, and means carried by the handle forcontrolling the engagement of the clutch members.

16. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a tool carried by the spindle, a second toolrotatable upon the spindle and surrounding the first tool, co-operatingclutch members upon the spindle and outer tool, and a lever fulcrumedupon the handle and normally retaining the clutch members separated,said lever being movable by the operator to allow the engagement of theclutch members.

17. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a tool carried by the spindle, a second toolrotatable upon the spindle and Surrounding the first tool, cooperatingclutch members upon the spindle and outer tool, and a lever fulcrumedupon the handle and normally retaining the clutch members separated,said lever being movable by the operator to allow the engagement of theclutch members and having means to limit the advance of one of thetools.

18. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a drill fixed in the spindle, a' bearing membermounted to move upon the handle longitudinally of the spindle, acountersink rotatable in the bearing member and surrounding the drill,clutch members for rotating the countersink from the spindle, and meansmovable upon the handle and engaging the bearing member for controllingthe engagement of the clutch members.

19. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a drill fixed in the spindle, a bearing membermounted to move upon the handle longitudinally of the spindle, acountersink rotatable in the bearing member and surrounding the drill,clutch members for rotating the countersink from the spindle, a springinterposed between the handle and bearing member to normally separatethe clutch members, and means movable upon the handle and engaging thebearing member for controlling the engagement of the clutch members.

20. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a drill fixed in the spindle, a bearing membermounted to move upon the handle longitudinally of the spindle, acountersink rotatable in the bearing member and surrounding the drill,clutch members for rotating the countersink from the spindle, and alever fulcrumed upon the handle and having a portion for contact withthe bearing member.

21. In an apparatus for operating upon shoes, a handle, a spindlerotatable thereon, a drill fixed in the spindle, a bearing membermounted to move upon the handle longitudinally of the spindle, acountersink rotatable in the bearing member and surrounding the drill,clutch members for rotating the countersink from the spindle, a leverfulcrumed upon the handle and having a portion for contact with thebearing member, and a screw threaded through the lever for contact witha relatively fixed element.

WILLIAM H. NUTT.

